Coming Home
by Kashish Kate
Summary: Veronica Jonson never saw the zombie apocalypse coming, but day by day, she tries to survive with her father and the group of survivors they stumbled upon. But she broke her one rule, don't fall in love during an apocalypse. Daryl/OC
1. Chapter 1

A/n: I'm back! Sorry for the hiatus on all my stories. I can't believe I haven't updated or written in a year! I've hit a very rough patch in my life, between moving into my own place, changing jobs, working 7 days a week, and going to college. So here's a little idea I came up with one day while watching Walking Dead while discussing fixing my car with my dad.

Disclaimer: I do not own Walking Dead, or anything associated with Walking Dead. I do own my original characters though.

**Chapter 1  
><strong>  
>It had been less than two months since the world ended. Well, technically at least. Two months ago, I was a 23 year old, brown haired, green eyed girl studying for her finals and preparing to graduate from Georgia State University as a physical therapist. And now, here I am, wandering the States with my father and a group of survivors. When zombie reports first hit the news, my dad was driving down from my hometown of Boston to get me out of Atlanta. My mom and sisters had refused to travel, so they stayed behind in Boston. But by the time my father had reached me, it was too dangerous to get back to Boston and we had lost contact with my mother and sisters. Our travels had led us to meet up with the most random group of survivors.<p>

First there was Lori Grimes. Her husband had been in a coma when the infection hit and was presumed dead by his best friend Shane Walsh, who was now acting like a father to Lori's son Carl. Then there was Ed, an abusive husband to his wife Carol and his daughter Sophia. Then there was Andrea and Amy, two sisters who's relationship reminded of me and my sisters at times. Then there were the Dixons.

Merle Dixon was an obvious druggie, his racist rants and actions nearly pushed us all to the snapping points at one time or the other. His younger brother Daryl was only 5 years old than me, but followed his brother's word like it was the law. Which was a shame because when we first joined the group, me and Daryl had gotten a small conversation in about hunting before Merle had interrupted, making some snide comments that lead to a fist fight between him and my father, only for guns to be drawn. After that, I kept my distance from the Dixons, only stealing glances at Daryl every now and then. Most of the group assumed he was a stupid racist redneck like his brother, but in the short 10 minute conversation he had proved himself to me to be the opposite. He may not have spoken the best English, but he had brains unlike his brother. And he had looks too, also unlike his brother. But I learned my lesson. While Merle and Daryl were together, I had to keep my distance.

I didn't talk to the rest of the group, kept to myself other than talking to my father and Amy. It was a zombie apocolypse, not high school. No need to get into any one's business unless it was threatening your life.

"Ronnie, you're day dreaming again," the voice was that of my father's, his Boston accent standing out clearly.

"I was just thinking about life before shit hit the fan," I admitted, digging through my bag for my cigarettes and lighter before heading out of the tent. I found a quiet place a bit further from the camp, but close enough in case any walkers came out of the woods.  
>Taking a long drag of the Marlboro light in my hand, I kept my eyes straight ahead of me, peering in the darkness, not necessarily looking for something in particular.<p>

"You shouldn't be doing that," a deep voice behind me whispered.

"And why not Dixon?" I laughed before taking another long drag. Plopping down beside me, Daryl took the cigarette out of my hand.

"Because, they're bad fo' you," he stated, smirking before he took a drag. I scoffed, reaching for the Marlboro light.

"No, really. Your dad'll kill ya if he sees you smoking," Daryl replied, holding the cigarette away from me, "Hey this ain't time for you to be tryin' to get on your daddy's bad side."

"I've never been on his bad side. It's the end of the fuckin' world, Daryl. I think my dad can put up with this one bad habit," I sighed, running a hand through my hair.

"They can kill ya," Daryl laughed.

"Oh yeah. Say that as you're puffing on one. Smart move Daryl." I huffed, "Can I please have my cigarette back?" Daryl studied me for a moment before handing me the cigarette back, "Let's share it."

"Ok," I nodded before taking another drag. As I exhaled the smoke, I asked, "Where's Merle?" As I handed Daryl the cigarette, Daryl shrugged, "No idea. Probably getting high in the woods."

"Won't he be mad at you for talking to me?" I questioned, studying the tracker for a minute before continuing, "I mean, didn't he call me a 'stuck up, snobby, arrogant prude'?" Daryl laughed at the memory, smoke coming from between his lips, "Yeah he did. Bu' he didn't mean it. He jus' gets riled up." I shrugged as Daryl handed me back the Marlboro. Taking a drag, I saw Merle's figure approaching us from the woods. Once last drag and I shoved the cigarette in Daryl's hand.

"Here he comes. Nice talking to you," I whispered before heading back to the tent I shared with my father. As I walked, I heard Merle yelling something, but I ignored him and kept walking. Rolling my eyes, I climbed into the tent and zipped up the door before snuggling into my makeshift bed.

It was the next day that some of the group was heading into the city for supplies. I watched as they got ready to go. 'They' meaning my father, Merle, T-Dog, Andrea, Glenn, and Jacqui.

"Dad are you sure this is a good idea?" I whispered to him while I watched him grab his baseball bat from our tent.

"Ronnie, I'll be fine. We're running out of supplies, so we need to go to the city to get more," he tried negotiating, "I'll bring you back a nice car."

"You better!" I snapped, sitting down on my makeshift bed, "Just be careful dad." My father patted my head before walking out of the tent, "Of course Ronnie." I followed him to the van they were using to get into the city. As I watched them drive off I sighed, pulling my cigarettes out of my pocket. I sensed someone standing next to me and without looking, I offered a cigarette. A rough calloused hand took it from me and lighted it.

"Don't worry, ya da'll be fine," the Southern accent made me smile.

"I know he will."

It took every fiber in my body to hold Daryl Dixon back from doing anything stupid as the words that the newcomer had said sunk in; Merle was pretty much left for dead in the city. And much as I hated Merle, my heart dropped as I watched Daryl's face change drastically. Finally, he broke out of my grasp and launched himself at Rick Grimes, before Shane got him into a chokehold. After a moment, Shane let him go and I watched as T-Dog admitted it was his fault that Merle was now chained to a roof, a padlock keeping walkers from getting to him. All I heard was Daryl shouting, because my brain was still processing all the information I just heard.

"Hell wit all of ya'll!" I watched as Daryl whiped his eyes, "Just tell me where he is, so I can go get him!" Rick agreed to go with Daryl to find Merle and I turned to my father as he approached me.

"What the hell happened?" I snapped as we walked towards our tent.

"Merle was acting out of control, fought with T-Dog. So, Rick, Lori's husband handcuffed him to a pipe. Turns out T-Dog dropped the key down a pipe so we had to leave his handcuffed there so we could get out. The door to the roof was chained shut though, so the Walkers couldn't get to him," my father explained as he entered the tent. Turning on my heel, I walked towards the tent that Daryl shared with his brother. Standing outside of it, I sighed, "Daryl. It's Ronnie." I could hear movement in the tent and knew that he was in there.

"Daryl, can I come in?" I asked. After a minute, the zipper slowly went up and the flap flipped back.

"What do you want?" Daryl was back on his air mattress, facing away from me. I entered the tent and sat down on the air mattress beside him after I zipped the tent flap back up.

"Are you ok?" I whispered, putting a hand lightly on his shoulder. Daryl suddenly turned towards me, "Do I look fuckin' ok?" I flinched, without realizing it and drew my hand back. His icy blue eyes were watery and his mouth was in a tight line.

"I'll just go then," I whispered before starting to get up, but a calloused hand grabbed my wrist. Looking back at him, I titled my head and he sighed, staring at the ground.

"Please, don't leave." Sitting back down, I wrapped my arms around his neck, his head buried in my shoulder as sobs wracked his body. Even though his brother was the biggest piece of shit alive, it was still his brother. His only blood relative left. I couldn't imagined what he felt.

A/n: Ok so there's Chapter 1. I'm feeling a little doubtful on this chapter, I may rewrite it eventually. But I wanted to get this chapter out of the way, so I could move on with the story. it will get better from here. I promise, I do have alot of ideas, just had a rough patch deciding where I wanted to start. I understand that Daryl may seem a little out of character, but I imagine that he did walk off and cry about his brother being left for dead. 


	2. Chapter 2

A/n: Sorry for not updating that fast. I was busy with school and work and then I tore my MCL and my medial meniscus at work. So im now home bound until they decide if I need surgery or not. So 6 weeks and counting! And I'm really sorry if this chapter doesn't match word by word of the episode. I felt like writing it my own way. I apologize if this gets on any one's nerves!

Chapter 2

I was sitting in my dorm with my roommate, Stacey when we got the news about the virus. Before I knew it, my father was pouding at the door, surprising me that he had made it from Boston within two days.

"Grab your bags! We're leaving!" he ordered. Running around my room, I glanced over at Stacey.

"Well, aren't you coming?" I yelled, grabbing my backpack and duffel bag. She shook her head, "My mother wanted me to wait here until she can get here. I don't want to leave with out her." I nodded, "Goodluck," before running out of the dorm, following my father to his truck.

I didn't realize I was staring off in space until a hand was being waved in my face. Snapping out of my day dream, I glanced up to see Glenn standing next to me nervously.

"You ok, Ronnie?" he questioned, twisting his hat in his hands. Sighing, I stood off, brushing my jeans off, "Guess I'm ok as I'll ever be. You guys ready to go?"

"You sure you wanna come with us?" Putting my sunglasses on, I nodded and started my walk through camp to the box truck. Near the truck, my father was standing talking to Shane and Rick. As I approached, my father turned to face me.

"Here, you'll need this," he stated, shoving his hunting knife and handgun in my face. Tucking the gun into my pants and holding the knife, I smiled, "Dad. I'll be fine." His scowl deepened and I laughed, "I'm not your little girl anymore. I can handle myself." Dropping his shoulders in defeat, he sighed, "I never thought I'd be agreeing with you about that until your wedding day." Taking a step closer, I hugged my dad, "Yeah too bad the world went to shit. You could've been walking me down the isle in a few years."

"Yeah I could have," his smile was broken as he pulled away from me. Putting a hand on his shoulder, I whispered, "I miss them too, dad." With that, I walked past him, patting his shoulder and climbed up into the box truck.

As I was sitting in the box truck, it seemed like the ride took forever. Leaning my head back against the cold wall of the truck, I closed my eyes. I began to lightly sing to myself, like I always did when I was driving anywhere.

"When will I see you again? You left with no goodbye, not a single word was said, no final kiss to seal any sins, I had no idea of the state we were in," I sang barely audiable. I felt eyes on me, and looking around I noticed Daryl and T-Dog were both staring at me.

"Do you normally sing to yourself?" T-Dog asked, a playful smile on his face. Blushing, I nodded, "It helps clear my mind."

"What were you singing?" He asked like he already knew the answer. Pushing my bangs out of my face, I stated, "Don't you Remember by Adele."

"Never listened to her. Though I heard she had a killer voice, her music didn't meet my requirements," T-Dog laughed. I shrugged, "I grew up listening to all different types of music, and her voice was just inspiring."

"Can you jus' shu' up already?" Daryl growled from across from me, "I ain't interested in no pop stars. We're lookin' fo' my brother!" My eyes dropped to the floor, my lips sealing into a tight line. After that, I guess I zoned out until we reached the city and Glenn announced we would have to walk from there. Tightening my hand on my hunting knife, I followed Daryl and T-Dog out of the back truck, my stomach in knots.

...

Once we were on the rooftop, we all took off running to where Merle was left. Daryl was running around screaming his name at the top of his lungs when all of our eyes fell on the hand, HUMAN HAND that was left, the cuffs dangling off the pipe just about it.

"No! No!" Daryl started screaming yet again, suddenly turning on T-Dog and aiming his crossbow in the face. Rick reacted quicker than I expected and had his gun pointed at Daryl's hand. While they finished their dispute, I crept closer to the hand. Kneeling in front of it, I poked it with my knife. Shadows cast over me, and I looked up to see three men waiting to hear my opinion.

"He could live through this," I sighed, standing up as Daryl wrapped the hand up in an old rag.

"Crazy bitch cut his hand off," Daryl mumbled, before shoving the wrapped up hand into Glenn's backpack.

"How do you know he could live through this?" T-Dog asked, staring at me as I continued poking around the roof. Shrugging, I replied, "While in college I was a nursing assistant in a hospital. I could tell by the amount of blood that he could live, doesn't mean if he kept losing blood he wouldn't pass out."

"So did you go to college to be a nurse?" Rick asked, putting his gun back in his holster. I scoffed, "Nursing is not for me. I was just shy of graduating as a physical therapist."

"He went this way," Daryl stated, pointing to the blood trail. We followed Daryl thru an old office building, passing two walkers that someone killed.

"'ad enough in 'im to take these two out," Daryl stated. Finally, we reached what looked to be a break room with a stove. As soon as I entered the room, I smelled burnt skin.

"Son of a bitch!" I stated as I watched Glenn nearly gag at the smell.

"Cauterized his wound," both me and Daryl stated at the same time. Rick put his hands on his hips, "He could still pass out from the blood loss."

"He broke out of this place though," Daryl stated, pointing behind Rick to a smashed window.

"Listen, we'll help you look a few blocks, but we need the guns first!" Rick stated. Nodding, Glenn interrupted, "I have a plan."

...

A/n: Wicked short chapter. Just wanted to throw this one out there. I'm in the process of working on the next one. I may skip around the episodes, possibly skipping the whole thing with Glenn being kidnapped. Don't hate me. It may be a possibility. Please Read and Review!


	3. Chapter 3

A/n: Okay guys so here's Chapter three! Hope you enjoy it. Please read and review!

Disclaimer: I only own Ronnie and her dad. Walking Dead is not mine, sadly.

Chapter 3

"You both are not doing this," Rick stated, pacing slightly in the tiny office we were holed up in. Glenn and I were kneeling on the floor, planning the best routes to the guns.

"Even I think it's a bad idea. And I don't even like you much," Daryl snapped, looking at Glenn. He turned to look at me, shaking his head, "Your dad'll kill you."

"That's why my father is not here," I stated, staring into his icy blue eyes until he looked away.

"It's a good idea," Glenn retorted, "Ok if you just hear me out." He looked at me and I nodded to continue.

"If we go out there in a group, we're slow and drawing attention. If just me and Ronnie go, we both can move fast. look," Glenn said, moving pieces on the board of 'streets' he drew on the floor with a sharpie. "There's the tank, five block from where we are now," pointing to a binder clip. Throwing a rolled up sticky note in front of the binder clip, he continued, "There's the bag of guns. And here's the alley I dragged you into when we first met. That's where Ronnie, Daryl and I will go."

"Why me?" Daryl asked.

"Your crossbow is quieter than his gun," Glenn explained. I looked back and forth between the two before Glenn continued once again.

"While Daryl is here, me and Ronnie run for the bag."

"Wait? You have us elsewhere?" Rick asked. Sitting back against an old desk, I listened intently.

"You and T-Dog, right? You'll be in this alley here. If anything goes wrong, we have you covering us from both ways. We'll get out no problem," Glenn looked at me and smiled.

"Hey kid, what'd you do before all this?" Daryl asked. Glenn shrugged, "Delivered pizza. Why?" Everyone nodded and we headed out of the office to our alley ways. Just before I climbed down the ladder after Glenn, Daryl grabbed my wrist.

"'f anythin' goes wrong, you run back to me. I'll cover you," he explained. Staring at him, I nodded. As I climbed down the ladder, I heard him mumble, "I don't want ya da' to kill me." Smirking to myself, I jumped off the last rung into the alley and followed Daryl as he approached the side walk. As Daryl loaded his crossbow from behind a dumpster, he smirked, "You got some balls for a Chinaman." Rolling his eyes, Glenn replied, "I'm Korean." A simple "whatever" was the last I heard from Daryl as we headed out to the street. I followed Glenn with my hunting knife out as we wove through cars and walkers. We seemed to be in the clear once Glenn grabbed the bag and Rick's hat. I took off, knowing Glenn was okay and headed back to the alley way, when I heard someone yelling in what seemed to be Spanish. As I got closer to the alley way, I saw two men beating Daryl. One of them grabbed me, as the other tried to the wrestle the bag out of Glenn's hands. The guy holding me threw me into the side of the dumpster, knocking my head and the last thing I heard was Glenn screaming Daryl's name.

...

I woke up back in the office we were in before. Rubbing my head, I winced when I heard a deep voice, "Hey don't do that." Looking up, I saw Daryl walking towards me.

"What happened?" I asked, pulling my hand away from my head.

"Got jumped. Took one of theirs hostage though," Daryl explained kneeling in front of me as he examined my head wound.

"Where's Glenn? Is he okay?" I asked groggily. Daryl shrugged, "Damn spics got him. We're gonna go see them soon." Nodding, I sighed, rubbing my eyes before looking back at him. His mouth was in a straight line, his eyes shining.

"Don't you eve' fuckin' do that again," his voice was deep, meeting the look his eyes were giving me.

"Ya, ya. I know. My father will kill you, yada yada," I laughed, wincing when I realized how badly my head was throbbing. Ignoring my comment, he continued, "Ya coulda got ya self killed Ronnie."

"But you had my back. I had nothing to worry about," I snapped, attempting to stand up. I was fine until I was straight up when I noticed the room was spinning and tilting. But Daryl was right there, wrapping an arm around my waist.

"C'mon. Let's go see the others," he muttered, helping me into the office in the next room.

"You okay?" Rick asked as I sat down in an old office chair. Giving him thumbs up, I mumbled, "Peachy," before I closed my eyes and rubbed my head wound.

...

Next thing I knew, we were all pointing weapons at the teen age boy we took hostage, approaching his friend's hide out. An older hispanic man came out of the doors.

"You okay little man?" he asked.

"They wanted to cut off my feet,' the boy stated, nervously. The older guy looked around the teen, "Cops do that." The smartass teen continued, "Not him. This redneck puto here. He cut off some man's hand, showed it to me." I couldn't help but smirk. This kid wasn't a big shot like he was earlier. Another guy came running out of the doors, holding a gun up.

"Hey that's the bastard right there that shot me in the ass with an arrow man!"

"Yeah and ya smashed her head against a dumpster. Sound even?" Daryl growled, his temper getting to him. I glanced over at him as I focused on pointing my shot gun as the guy who smashed my head in. There must have been a mention of a shoot out, because suddenly Daryl was in front of me, his crossbow raised. As we backed away from the compound, I glanced up to see Glenn duck taped and hands tied behind his back. I felt my temper boiling as we walked away.

...

A/n: Okay, so here's a quick chapter three. More on the way! :) Please read and review. I made Ronnie seem so focused at the end, because when you're pointing a gun at someone, everything else doesn't matter. Anyways, hope you guys like it!


	4. Chapter 4

A/n: Wohoo! Here is Chapter 4. I apologize on the delay. I've been out of work for 6 weeks, so I assumed I could get chapters done. But then, life decided to throw me a bunch of curve balls, and my muse disappeared. But dear old History class saved the day. I wrote this in class! Hope you like it!

PS. The italics mean a flash back!

Chapter 4

As G went on to explain, I began to understand why he wanted the guys. When Rick offered him half of the weapons and ammo, I couldn't help but smile. Even during a zombie apocolypse, he kept his humanity. Once we were back on our way to the box truck outside the city, I sighed deeply. Maybe this was a hint that things were turning around, maybe God was giving us a chance after all. I was horribly wrong. The ear piercing screams coming from our camp caused me to run faster than I ever have, shot gun ready for battle with these dead fucks. As we reached camp, we unloaded ammo, until every last zombie was dead, their brain destroyed. I glanced towards andrea, who was kneeling next to her dying sister, sobbing. I was about to walk towards her, but suddenly I realized someone was missing. Glancing around the camp, I screamed "DAD!" at the top of my lungs. When I got no answer, I ran around until I found him on the ground, a walker on top of him. Pushing the decaying body off of him, I checked him over. I counted not one, but several bites on his body. My vision clouded as my flood gates opened, tears spilling down my face.

"Dad, no please, don't leave me," I managed to choke out. He just smiled at me, "I'm going to see you mom and sisters. Join us after you reach your seventies." Here he was, trying to make me laugh at a time like this. Suddenly, he started reaching towards his hand gun that was an arm length away.

"Dad, no please," I sighed as he cocked the gun, putting it to his head, "I love you." I closed my eyes just as he pulled the trigger, the gun shot echoing through my head. Without looking at his body, I stood up and walked away.

_Here I was, standing in front of a full length mirror, spinning in my dress. I caught my father in the back wiping tears from his eyes.  
>"Dad, save the crying til the wedding day," I laughed. He shrugged, "I can't help it."<br>"Don't worry, It's still not for another year," I said, smiling. Suddenly, his facial expression changed, "Are you sure you want to marry him?"  
>"Yes dad, you know I love him," I sighed before turning back to the woman doing my appointment, "This is the one!"<em>

I didn't know what I was doing, I just kept walking further and further. I was glad that everyone was too busy to notice, I just wanted to die alone. If my father couldn't survive this apocolypes, no one could. Sure my mom and 26 year old sister had a chance, but with Boston being extremely packed, I doubt it. My ten year old sister wouldn't have a chance without them. Maybe my father was right, maybe they were all dead. I didn't want to be alone in this world and without them, I was. After what seemed to be an eternity of walking, I collapsed, sobs wracking my body. I was extremely loud in the dead of the night but I didn't care who or what heard me. Here I was, giving up on life. Five years of school went to waste, my payments on my new car were a waste. Everything was a waste in my eyes. Looking up at the sky, I felt my blood boil, "Ya think this is funny? People believed in you! They worshipped you and here you are, throwing it all in our faces. You're a piece of fucking shit!"

"Is that helping," a sudden voice behind me asked. Without looking, I took a deep breath, "Go back to camp Glenn."

"Why? So you can wait to be a walkers midnight snack?" his tone waivered at the mention of a walker.

"You have no idea what I'm going through, Glenn. Just leave, please!" I couldn't talk after that, I began to sob harder than I thought was possible. A pair of arms wrapped around me and I turned, burying my head in his shoulder.

"Why? Of all people, why my dad? He was the last person I had in this world," I whispered, fearing my voice would crack if I raised it.

"Fate, I guess. Everything happens for a reason," he sighed as he pushed my hair out of my face. After a few minutes, he shifted the gun on his shoulder, "C'mon let's head back to camp." I looked up to see him extending his hand towards me and I took it, afraid of letting go. We walked back to camp and I glanced over at the tent me and my father shared. How could I sleep in there knowing I would never see my father again? Was it my fault? Maybe I shouldn't have gone to town. I could've saved him. A hand on my shoulder broke me out of my thoughts. Turning, I was met with deep blue eyes.

"Ya ok?" his southern accent gruff with lack of sleep and stress. I shook my head.

"I got 'er from 'ere," he said to Glenn before tugging my arm near my elbow. "Ya can stay in my tent to'ight. Need anythin from yours?" I shook my head before I ducked into his tent. Sitting down on his cot, I took off my shoes before realizing my clothes were covered in blood. I was about to call out to him to get me clothes from my tent, but I guess he saw the blood, because in less than a minute, he was back in the tent with a pair of shorts and a tshirt for me.

"I'm gonna go help," he said, "Just sleep." I nodded and waited until he zipped up the tent flap before I stripped off my bloody clothes, tossing them into the opposite corner. I pulled on the basketball shorts and Bruins t-shirt before climbing under the blankets on the cot. The smell was inviting, a mix of cigarettes and a southern smell, like a nice southern whiskey. I sighed before closing my eyes and forcing my body to sleep.

...

When I woke up the next morning, I found myself in Daryl's tent. Glancing around, I noticed he was on the floor, using Merle's old blankets as a makeshift bed. He was still sound asleep, his hair sticking up in random places. I smiled at the site, he looked so peaceful, not like the usual scowl that was plastered on his face at all times. But the happiness ended when my eyes caught site of my blood covered clothes. And that's when it all came flooding back. Tears ran down my face as I layed back in the cot, muttering to myself, "I wish this was just a bad dream." Rubbing my eyes, I sat back up and put my sneakers on. Stepping out of the tent, I was afraid to look around. But there were bodies scattered everywhere. Andrea was still sobbing near her sister, the men had started moving the bodies to be disposed of.

"Ya sleep okay?" Daryl asked from behind me. I hadn't heard him get up. Turning to face him, I nodded crossing my arms, "Thanks." He nodded, "Anytime Ronnie," before reaching to ruffle my hair, "I'm gonna go help them. Try ta eat, ok?"

"Yeah," I said before heading over to the fire. Lori was sitting cook breakfast over it, "How you holding up kiddo?" I shrugged, "As good as I can right now."

"So you slept in Daryl's tent?" she asked, an eye brow raised.

"Yes, because I can't go near my tent without thinking about my dad even more," I sighed, "Why?"

"Because he's never like that with anyone except you. He took a liking to you the first day," she said smiling, causing me to scoff," Just because I don't treat him like a redneck like you guys do, doesn't mean he took a liking to me."

"Just think about it," Lori said, handing me a plate of food. I took my first bite, before looking over to where Daryl was with the other guys. Sighing to myself, I shook my head, there's no way Lori's right.

...

A/n: And that is chapter 4! Hope you guys liked it!


	5. Chapter 5

A/n: I'm back! Thank you to all who have reviewed. After my knee injury, I went right back to working close to 80 hours a week and haven't had the time to write. But here is chapter 5. And once again, italics are flash backs. In this chapter, I really wanted for Daryl and Ronnie to have a heart to heart and to learn more about their pasts. Hope you guys like it!

**Chapter 5**

He smiled at me, that was the first time we met. He smiled and right away I felt something for him. But when I left him, I knew my father was right. He always told me that no man would be good enough for his daughter, and the one that I would end up with, would prove that he deserved me. The day I left Mike, I thought I was going to be sitting at my desk on the phone with my father, the one man I could trust in this world. He would have calmed me down, make me think clearly, then would tell me to go out and have fun. It wasn't the end of the world. Once again, he was right, that wasn't the end of the world.

I had always been worried about when my parents would get so old, I would break down every night before and after they died. I never thought my father would die from a zombie. I pictured my father dying in his bed, at the ripe age of 95, smiling at me and my sisters. But here I was, no father, no sisters, no mother. I had felt lonely when I went to college in Georgia, but nothing was worse than this. I watched as Daryl and a few of the other guys began to dig holes. For my father, Amy and the rest that we had lost in the attack on the camp. We thought we were safe up here, and I began to see Rick deep in thought, knowing that he was thinking of where to go next.

I stood back, almost near the tree line, watching everyone like I was watching through a camera. This couldn't be real. I was waiting for my alarm to start going off, and I would wake up, in my dorm. I would get ready for school and head there, then head to work. After that I would come home and if I remembered this dream, I would sit my ass down and right a killer book and become a millionaire like J.K. Rowling. But it wasn't going to happen, this was our reality now. I had to live with this one way or another. Once I knew that they were finished burying the bodies, and burning the bodies of the walkers, I headed over to my father's grave. Kneeling down, I held a sob back. Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out one of the pictures my sister had taken of me and my parents at my high school graduation. I put a corner of it under the stone that was used for a grave marker.

"If any one sees your grave, they'll know that you had a family that loved you very much. I'll see you and the rest of the family soon dad, I promise," I whispered before standing up and joining the rest of the group.

"Ronnie, we're leaving. Going to head to the CDC. You're welcome to join us," Shane explained. I nodded, crossing my arms across my chest, "I don't have much of a choice, do I?"

"Then start packing up. We're leaving soon," Lori said, placing a hand on my shoulder, "Do you need help?"

"I'll be fine," I snapped before shrugging her hand off. I turned in the direction of mine and my father's tent. It felt like every step I took, the tent kept moving away from me. Finally I reached the tent and hestitantly reached for the zipper to the flap. Unzipping it, I glanced around before stepping inside. I immediately started packing my things, just throwing whatever I needed into my duffle bags. As I brought them out, I noticed Rick walking by.

"Rick!" I called out to him. He turned to face me and I tossed him a set of keys, "It was my father's truck. He never let me drive it."

"Ronnie, are you sure?" Rick asked, "Where are you going to ride?" I shrugged, heading in the direction of Dixon's truck, "I'll find a ride." Rick smiled, "Thank you," and he turned and walked away.

When I got to the Dixons' truck, I slowed my pace. Daryl was throwing his bags into the back of the truck, next to his brother's motorcycle. He turned around, reaching for another bag before he saw me.

"Throw 'em in th' back," he said, without ever stopping to look at me.

"Thanks," I said as I tossed them into the back.

"Do you nee' my help to take th' ten' down?" Daryl asked. I turned to see him staring at my campsite. I shook my head when he glanced at me.

"Nah. It's not worth it. I don't need it," I said, turning away, "Too many memories."

"Al'igh', then get your ass in th' truck," Daryl said, opening the drivers side door, "We're almos' ready to leave." I walked around the back of the truck, jumping into the passengers side. We waited until we got the signal from anyone, before driving. As I was staring out of the window, I knew that Daryl kept glancing at me. Finally I turned to face him.

"Can I help you?" I asked, crossing my arms, leaning back against the door. Daryl glanced at me, "Nah. Jus' wonderin' why you been so quiet. Ya never shut up."

"I'm fine Daryl. Really I am," I said, "Why are you being so nice to me. You're an asshole to everyone else." I sat and stared at him, waiting for a response.

"Fine, whatever. Don't talk to me. I don't give a shit," I snapped after five minutes of silence. Daryl glanced at me again.

"Ya remind me of some one I used to know," he admitted, his voice husky, like he was forcing himself to say it.

"Who?" Daryl glanced at me again, "My mom."

"What was she like?" I found myself asking. Staring at the road ahead, he shifted in his seat.

"She was a good woman. Quiet, but could be fiesty like you. My dad used ta' beat her. One day, when I came home from a bad day at school, she was gone," he glanced at me again, "She couldn't take it anymore. She broke."

"Were you close to her?" I couldn't believe it. Daryl fucking Dixon was opening up to me. I never expected this day, ever. He was a quiet, reserved red neck, unless you set him off. But here he was, opening up to me.

"Yeah. Merle was always in and out of jail. My dad was a drunk, always beat on Merle until Merle got locked up at the age of 16. I was only 9 at the time. I had tracked mud into the house. Came after me with a belt. My mom stepped in front of him. After that, any thing I did wrong, he went after her. She left when I was 15," he explained, his knuckles turning white from gripping the steering wheel too tight. I couldn't imagine the flash backs he was having while telling me this. He glanced at me again, and his grip on the wheel relaxed.

"Everytime I look at you, I see the same attitude my mother had. Always a postitive one." I nodded, letting everything sink in.

"A few years ago, I was supposed to get married." Daryl looked at me, and that's when I realized I had said that. Now I was opening up to him. What was this, some fucking counseling session.

"You don't seem the type to get married," he said, a smirk on his face. I reached over and slapped him arm, "Asshole."

"No, but seriously, what happened?" he asked, his smirking disappearing. I leaned back against the door.

Shrugging, I admitted, "One day, I came home from class. I walked in, called out to Mike. Just to say hi. And there he was, sitting on the couch, a bottle of rum in his hand." Daryl's stare lingered on me for a few seconds before he turned his head back to the road. I took this a sign to continue, "He mentioned something about my friend. I forget what I said, but it set him off. A few minutes later, we were in each other's face screaming. You know me, I'm not one to back down in a fight, even against you brother." Daryl laughed, "I know you don't."

"Well, he took me off guard. Let's just say, he had a nasty left hook," I sighed, glancing out to the road in fornt of us.

"He hit ya?" I glanced at Daryl to see he was staring at me. Nodding, I turned back to the road.

"He broke my jaw. Had to get it wired shut for a few weeks," I started.

"Son of a bitch, I hope he got what he deserved," Daryl muttered before glancing at me, his knuckles tightening on the wheel once again. I ignored his comment and continued, "I moved out and in with one of my friends. At that time, I hadn't spoken to my father in almost a year. When I called him, he took two weeks off of work. If you knew my dad before this shit happened, he had never missed a day of work in about 15 years. Well, he came down, advised me to move onto campus and get a restraining order against Mike. I did. According to Dale today is the 15th. Today was the day I was supposed to get married. My dad was going to walk me down the isle at 6 o'clock," I took a deep breath, "I don't care about breaking it off with Mike. I just can't believe that now, if the world was to ever right it self, I won't have my father to walk me down the isle at my wedding."

"Ya father was proud of ya. Ya could tell just by the way he talked to you," Daryl said, "Were you the only one?"

"No. I have two sisters. They were nothing like me. They were both the shy quiet types, I'm the complete opposite. Plus they were really close to my mom. I was a daddy's girl," I smiled proudly. Daryl laughed, "I could tell the day you an' ya dad came to camp." I rolled my eyes, before I shifted in my seat.

"Wake me up when we get there," I said, sighing as I got comfortable in the seat.

"What ever you say princess," Daryl said, smirking. I returned the smirk, "Shut up and watch the road, red neck." I heard his chuckle before I began to doze off.

_My eyes felt like weights, it felt like it took all my energy just to open them up. I heard beeping and as I gathered my bearings, I realized I was in a hospital._

_"Oh honey, you're awake," I heard a voice say. I looked over to see a nurse hooking up a fresh bag of saline to my IV. I tried to talk, but it felt like my jaw was sealed shut. Reaching up, I felt the wires. My body began to panic before I even realized it. The beeping got louder and the pace sped up. I felt the nurse grab my hands, holding them in hers._

_"Honey, it's okay. Your jaw is wired shut," she explained. "Here, you can use this to write." I looked down to see what she had placed in front of me. A white board and a marker. I picked it up and with shaking hands, wrote out_

_**What happened? **She read it before looking at me, pity in her eyes._

_"Honey, you were found in your apartment. Someone hit you in the face pretty hard. Broke your jaw." She moved her hand to push my hair out of my face. "Would you like for me to call someone?" I nodded frantically, writing under my previous question_

_**Call my father. 617-302-9990 **She nodded, "Okay honey. I'll call him now and let him know." I tried to smile, but realized I couldn't._

_"You have a visitor. Do you want me to let them in?" she questioned. I noticed, hoping to see someone I could trust. She stood up and went to the door, calling someone in. I was busy erasing the board, and when I looked up, I jumped wanting to scream._

_"Hello sweetheart!"_

"Wake up Ronnie," I felt someone shaking me. I gasped for air, jumping. Looking around, I realized I had fallen asleep with my head on Daryl's leg.

"Ya okay? You look like you saw a ghost," he laughed, looking down at my head on his leg. Quickly I sat up and moved to the other side of the truck.

"I'm fine, just a bad memory," I whispered, curling up into my self, staring out the window.

"What ever you say sweetheart," Daryl laughed. I felt everything in my body snap and before I could stop myself, I said threateningly, "Don't call me that." Daryl glanced at me.

"Okay darlin'," Daryl said before staring back at the road. That was the thing that I loved about him, he didn't question me. When I said I didn't like something, he didn't question it. He just knew not to do it anymore. I sighed.

"Sorry," I whispered. Reaching up to my face, I wiped the tears away. "I just never liked being called that. Call me what ever you want, but that." I knew Daryl had the hint of a smile on his face.

"You got it babe."

"Are we almost there?" I asked. Daryl nodded, "Yeah only like ten more minutes." I turned to watch out the window as we got closer to the CDC. The bodies began to pile up the closer we got. Finally we reached the desolated area. Bodies were piled up everywhere and I noticed most of cars surrounding the CDC were filled with walkers.

"Ronnie, get away from the door," Daryl growled lowly. I knew not to agrue with him and slid right up beside up him. Finally we reached the entrance of the CDC. It was a good 20 feet to the main door from where our cars were parked and the walkers were already beginning to head towards the cars.

"Ya ready for this?" Daryl asked looking at me. I shrugged, "As ready as I'll ever be." I grabbed my father's gun and my backpack.

"Then let's go!"

A/n: Wow, I didn't think this chapter was going to be this long. I got most of this from a dream I had and being down in North Carolina. Hope you guys enjoyed it and hope you didn't think that Daryl was too OOC. I just imagined if someone reminded him of a loved one, that he would be more likely to be comfortable around that person. I really hope you all liked it!


	6. Authors Note

**Hey guys! Just wanted to give you a little update on why I'm taking forever to add to my stories. Back in Thanksgiving I was diagnosed with epilepsy. I thought I could get more writing done, but I've had one bad medical hit after another. I recently just moved from a small town north of Boston, to the lovely city of Dorchester! Its fun, but during the move, my netbook charger was lost and it has all my other chapters on it, along with some original writing I was going to be putting up on this site as well. So sadly, I must find my muse and rewrite them all. Which would be easy if I wasn't dealing with medical problems ontop of trying to find a job and keep a social life seeing as I just turned 21 back in January. So I'm not abandoning my stories, just taking a break while I get everything in order. I update my profile but I know most of you follow my stories. I appreciate it if you guys took the time to read this. I'll be back soon.**

**~Kashish Kate**


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